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My girlfriend has just accessed her ISA (RBOS) and seen that £2200 has been taken from her account without permission.

Moorcroft debt recovery bought the debt from her credit card company and she contacted them two weeks ago stating that she had some money to pay them off but not the full amount (£4600)
She offered to pay them £1500 as long as the debt was fully cancelled.

She had £3100 in her ISA but needed the remainder to live on.

As far as I'm aware from looking online this is illegal.
Surely no one can authorise a payment from your account apart from the account owner.

As far as I'm aware no.
She doesn't own property either.
The only correspondence she has had is an offer to pay a lesser amount, which she couldn't pay so she offered what she could at £1500.
I'm guessing they wouldn't have accepted the offer (we were awaiting their reply from her offer made two weeks ago) and she would have had to pay more.
Is it worth seeking legal counsel?
A friend used to work for a debt agency and he says it's illegal and if followed up the money can be recovered and debt wiped on grounds of this.
Also surely the bank is at fault as cannot allow payment to be made without any permission granted?

Yes, HOW did they get access is more pertinent. Its not plastic, so they couldnt have processed a continuous payment authority.

Are we sure that Moorcroft took it? Not the bank covering a debt of theirs?

I would be onto the bank and screaming at someone to explain what the hell happened if I were you.

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Thanks for replies.
We contacted the bank and it was moorcroft who took the money.
She has never given any bank details or permission to Moorcfoft or the bank to access the account or take money.
She has never made a previous payment via moorcroft. She will have doen via the bank but that was years ago when the card was still valid etc.

Is it best to speak with the bank or Moorcroft to find out if the debt has been fully bought?
Surely they must have to tell you legally who owns the debt now?

Sorry the card was with the same bank as she banks with.
can understand them taking the money but has been bought from moorcroft, just need to find out whether it has fully been bought..... not sure if debt collection agencies can half buy debts etc.

The main thing is no one should be able to access her account without her permission no matter how much money you have or owe.....?

Yes, the credit card was with RBOS.
However, as far as I'm aware the debt was bought by Moorcroft.
We need to asertain whether the whole debt was bought or just a proportion.
The payment, when asked the bank to whom it was paid, was to Moorcroft, or so they say.........

If moorcroft are collecting on RBS behalf, they can always pass it back to RBS to deal with and in that case RBS can take the funds from the ISA to pay the cc arrears.
If it was standard current account and the money was benefits money etc JSA HB etc, if she can prove this I think they have to give it back.
But if not it is a right the bank has without having to put it in the T&Cs of the accounts.
If it was not RBS who did it, I cannot see how a separate company would ever be able to obtain her bank details or even know she had an ISA and with what bank, also wouldn't it have to be her who authorises the transation. People can't just request payments to them from someone elses account.
It does sound more like RBS using right to offset.

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